Following on from the news last issue that Lord DeMauley committed the government to a national pollinator strategy (a bee action plan), we’ve had some more good news here in Birmingham. Namely, that all the projects we funded with last year’s comedy gig, There’s Something Funny in the Honey, are buzzing forward.
Readers will remember from our June/July issue that the first of these projects, the Jubilee Bee Garden in Balsall Heath, was opened in May by local MP Roger Godsiff. We’re also making great progress on the other two projects funded by the gig; our bee-friendly area here at The Warehouse, (read Ben Mabbett’s Warehouse News for more details on this and the garden tidy up), which has started attracting Bees even before being finished, and a Foraging Necklace being set-up by Highbury Community Orchard in Highbury Park.
The Foraging Necklace has been planted over the past few months, and when complete will provide a habitat and corridor for both wild bees and the honey bees based in the hives in Higbury Park. By the time you read this, the Foraging Necklace will have been opened at the Honey Fun Day event in Highbury Park. I’m sure you will be able to read more about how this fun-filled day of activity went on our website or in the next issue of the newsletter! It’s really exciting to have helped create a bee habitat in one of Birmingham’s fantastic parks, where it can be enjoyed by the whole community.
Being based in the city-centre means that our bee-friendly area at The Warehouse, although small can provide a vital habitat for bees in a built-up urban environment. Adding to our desire for The Warehouse to be the little green community in the big city!
The three of our bee worlds coming on-stream couldn’t come at a better time for bees. These, and the larger Nature Improvement Areas being set-up by the Wildlife Trust and their partners, are showing what we can do on a practical level to help pollinators and really help bees in our city.
However, it is vital that alongside this practical action, we have the right policies in place to really help bees in Birmingham and across the UK. This is why Lord DeMauley’s announcement on 28th June was so vital. However, we also need to make sure that the promised Pollinator Strategy really does what’s need to help bees and other pollinators. So watch out for the consultation, and make sure you demand that it is as strong as possible to protect our buzzy fuzzy friends! The three of our bee worlds coming on-stream couldn’t come at a better time for bees. These, and the larger Nature Improvement Areas being set-up by the Wildlife Trust and their partners, are showing what we can do on a practical level to help pollinators and really help bees in our city.
